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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27687943">From Every Storm a Blue Sky</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/bonghost/pseuds/bonghost'>bonghost</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Haikyuu!!</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>But also not, F/M, Female Reader, Fluff and Angst, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, I'm Bad At Tagging, I'm procrastinating, Slow Burn</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-11-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-11-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-07 02:02:06</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Not Rated</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,441</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27687943</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/bonghost/pseuds/bonghost</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>A year after your mother’s death, your life has been completely turned upside down. You’ve moved back to Japan and found yourself a new job in a new city surrounded by completely new people, the only familiar face your mother’s cat. But not everything is quite as daunting as it seems; especially when you’ve got friends like your coworker Takeda, a newfound determination to restore the high school where you teach to its old glory, and the possibility of something more with the owner of a variety store who you’ve been pestering to come coach the boys’ volleyball team…</p><p>Updates infrequently</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Ukai Keishin/Reader</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>19</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>From Every Storm a Blue Sky</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>(1 Year Ago)</strong>
</p><p>There was sunshine on the day your mother died, and it rained the day you closed the door on the apartment that you had shared for the last time.</p><p>It had been a long summer, and an even longer fall, and by the time winter rolled around, your small hometown just didn’t feel like home at all anymore. Everything that was once nostalgic and comforting now seemed grey and dismal. Lonely.</p><p>For a long time it had only been the two of you, and that had been fine, perfect even. You’d had your own slice of happiness. She owned the small bakery that was below your shared apartment, and though the business had never been lucrative, she had always managed to make ends meet. She had helped pay most of your university tuition, had paid all of the bills on time, spoiled you more than she should have. You had never heard her complain, and no matter how much you’d protest, she would always wave you off with a huff. It seemed that the more you objected, the more determined she became to do it.</p><p>The apartment that had once been filled with love and music and laughter now was filled with nothing more than brown cardboard moving boxes. You felt a burning in your eyes, your throat, your chest.</p><p>Now everything was quiet. Empty. You had always liked the sound of rain, had loved the way that it fell against the windows, the muted <em>tink, tink, tink, </em>of it soft and comforting. You had loved falling asleep to the sound of it running against the glass panes and the hollow <em>shhhhh</em> of it against the roof. Now, you would give anything to never hear it again. Now, it was the worst sound in the world.</p><p> </p><p>**</p><p>
  <strong>(Present Day)</strong>
</p><p>Miyagi Prefecture was, outwardly, nothing like your hometown, but you found yourself feeling comfortable there nonetheless. Every morning you woke up in your small, one-bedroom apartment, and pulled open curtains to look out at the city, listening to the soft sounds outside as the world below came to life. You made coffee in your pajama bottoms, and fought the urge to curl back up under the warm duvet to cuddle with Grey, your mother’s cat. You had always thought that to be a funny name, as he wasn’t grey at all but tabby brown, but your mother had insisted that Grey was the only name that suited him.</p><p> Every morning was more or less the same, but it was easy that way. Easy to slip into mindless autopilot, and to forget that your life had ever been anything other than this.</p><p>It had been just over five months now since you’d moved to Japan, and had taken up a job as an English teacher at a local high school. It was different, much different than anything you’d ever done before, but you found that you loved it. You liked the kids (most of them, at least) and the kids liked you, and the faculty had been more than welcoming and courteous.</p><p>It was a nice, relatively short commute to Karasuno High, especially since you’d caved and bought what was now your most prized possession, a small, 150cc dusty blue Vespa. Offering Grey one last scratch under the chin, you downed the rest of your coffee and grabbed the helmet that hung next to the door, and you left for work.</p><p>**</p><p>The first half of your day went exactly as it always did; one class to teach first thing in the morning, course planning and schedules to fill out, emails to respond to. Nothing particularly eventful, and although it wasn’t <em>boring, </em>nothing particularly new.</p><p>You were finishing marking last week’s pop quizzes when lunch rolled around, and by then you were famished, mouth watering at the thought of the lunch you’d packed for today.</p><p>A chorus of greetings went up as you walked into the staff lunchroom and you responded in kind, smiling. A familiar face waved you over enthusiastically, and your smile widened as you made your way over to sit next to Takeda, a young teacher who had been exceptionally helpful and kind since you’d gotten here. He’d helped you get situated, and had even gone above and beyond to get you involved in Karasuno’s school culture.</p><p>In fact, he’d invited you to help with his current project, which involved restoring Karasuno High’s volleyball team’s former glory.</p><p>It was something that you’d heard a little bit about, but nowhere near as much as you’d learned since agreeing to help your coworker, and friend, out.</p><p>You let out a sigh of contentment as you settled down into the chair, pulling out your lunch.</p><p>“Long morning?” Takeda asked, his eyes sparkling.</p><p>“Not even. Just famished.”</p><p>He laughed, nodding. There was something about him, some sort of nervous energy that had him nearly bouncing in his seat. “Classes going well?”</p><p>You rolled your eyes, only half exasperated, and shot him a look from the corner of your eye. “Alright, Takeda-san, out with it.”</p><p>He nearly exploded with excitement. “Ah, yes, alright! You know the practice game that I was trying to schedule with Nekoma?”</p><p>Your eyes widened as you chewed, and you nodded, indicating for him to go on.</p><p>“Well, coach Nekomata finally returned my call. He said he’d love to have us over for a match.”</p><p>Your eyes widened even further, and you swallowed, finally understanding his excitement. “Oh my god, really? That’s amazing, Takeda! Alright!”</p><p>You gave him a soft high-five. Nekoma had been long-standing rivals of Karasuno. The cats and the crows, the trash can showdown. The two of you had been trying to plan something like this out for a while; the boys would be over the moon. But then Takeda continued, rubbing the back of his neck.</p><p>“The only problem is that we still have no coach.”</p><p>Ah. That.</p><p>“Well I mean, between the two of us, we should be able to figure something out, right?” But even as you said it, you knew that that wasn’t really ideal, at all.</p><p>You had played volleyball in high school, but you’d never been all that invested in it. Definitely not invested enough to be able to coach. And Takeda, well… for all of his enthusiasm, he didn’t have much to offer in terms of coaching, either.</p><p>“But,” he said. “I’ve been trying to get something going.”</p><p>“Oh?”</p><p>He nodded. “It’s not exactly going… well. But that, I think, is where you can come in.”</p><p>You raised an eyebrow, confused.</p><p>“Do you remember when you came here, and I offered up some spare time to help you get situated, and you told me that you owed me one…” he trailed off, looking up at you sheepishly. You laughed.</p><p>“I do remember saying that, and I remember meaning it too. So what is it I can help you with?”</p><p>His eyes lit up. “Really? Are you sure? You don’t have to, I’ll figure something out, though he’ll see me  coming from kilometers away and refuse to talk to me…”</p><p>“Fair is fair, Takeda! I owe you one.” You smiled. “So, who do I have to go harass this time?”</p><p>He could have hugged you. “Oh thank you, [L/N]-san! I promise it’s nothing so serious. Let me write down the details for you…”</p><p> </p><p>**</p><p>A few hours later, after the end of the school day had well come and gone, you had hopped onto your scooter and followed the directions that Takeda had given you. <em>I just need you to talk to Ukai Keishin, and try your best to convince him to come coach for us. I’ve been calling him on the phone so much, he probably wouldn’t want to hear me out at all. But he might listen to you.</em></p><p>
  <em>How will I know who he is? I’ve never met the man before.</em>
</p><p>The store was small, and nothing particularly exciting to look at from the outside. Quaint. But there was the sign, <em>Sakanoshita. </em>You glanced down at the text message from Takeda, and, after confirming the name, tucked your helmet under your arm and pushed open the door.</p><p>The man behind the counter struck you first as intimidating, and second, in a quick-fire way, incredibly handsome. His hair was blonde and pulled back by a head band in a casual, laissez-faire way, his ears pierced twice. A cigarette hung smoking from his lips. He had been sitting with his legs crossed up on the table when you walked in, but now he sat up, folding the newspaper he had been reading. Was this Ukai? You couldn’t be sure. Takeda hadn’t given you much beyond a nervous laugh and a “<em>you’ll know him when you see him”.</em></p><p>“Welcome,” the man-who-might-be-Ukai said, crushing the cigarette into an ashtray. His eyes were sharp and intense, his gaze heavy. You didn’t miss the way it held onto you for a moment, seeming to cling to the way you gave your returned greeting, to the way you moved, to the way your hand curled around the strap at your shoulder. You fought the urge to laugh nervously; <em>he’s probably just trying to figure out who I am. After all, they don’t get many foreigners in Miyagi. </em></p><p>When you didn’t move from where you stood, he raised an eyebrow. “You need help finding something?”</p><p>You gave a small smile, clearing your throat a bit uncomfortably. “Um… yes actually. Or, someone. Sorry for the trouble. I’m here for a man named Ukai?”</p><p>Now both of his brows shot up, and a strange look shot across his face. For a moment you were grasped by a panic that told you that you had absolutely butchered the name. But then he swiped his thumb across his lip and stood, leaning against the counter.</p><p>“Who’s looking for him?” He leaned toward you slightly, mouth quirking at the way heat flooded into your cheeks. <em>Why were you blushing right now? </em></p><p>
  <em>Because he’s handsome, and he has a nice voice.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>So what?</em>
</p><p>You bowed quickly. “I apologize, I should have started with that. I’m a teacher at Karasuno High, and my co-worker Takeda and I are looking for—”</p><p>The man rolled his eyes and turned away, slipping another cigarette between his lips. “Look, I’m really sorry you had to trek all the way here, but I’ve already told Spe— <em>Takeda </em>that I’m not interested in coaching. I haven’t been involved with volleyball for a while, and there’s no way in hell that I’m going back now.”</p><p>For a moment you were taken aback at his response, but then something clicked. Takeda had said something about Ukai being pretty rough around the edges. You swallowed a small smile, contenting yourself instead to take up his earlier play of leaning against the counter, tapping your mouth thoughtfully.</p><p>“Hm. Yeah, he did mention that you might say something like that.”</p><p>Ukai let out a short, dry laugh, and instead of answering right away, flicked a lighter up to his cigarette, frowning when the spark wouldn’t catch.</p><p>“Need a light?” You reached into your purse to grab your own lighter, which you held out toward him with an innocent smile.</p><p>With a glare he snatched the lighter from you grasp, lighting the cigarette in one smooth motion. He took a long inhale, loosing a cloud of smoke which he took care to direct away from you. You found yourself watching the way his lips closed around his cigarette, casual and… <em>attractive. </em>Yeah, this man was attractive. As hell.</p><p>How long had it been since you’d thought about <em>anyone </em>like this?</p><p>“Smoking is bad for you, you know,” you said, offhand, slipping the lighter back into your bag.</p><p>“Says the one with a lighter in her purse.”</p><p>“I’m only a social smoker,” you replied with a wink.</p><p>How long had it been since you’d <em>flirted </em>with someone? Or tried to, at least.</p><p>He shook his head, laughing softly around the cigarette in his mouth. “Fair enough.”</p><p>You realized with a start that you liked his laugh, a lot. He didn’t seem like the type to laugh too often. With a sigh, he flicked the edge of his cigarette with his thumb, ashing it.</p><p>“Look, it’s like I told Specs before; I’m just not interested in coaching. I have plenty enough to do as is, and that’s just not a world that I want to get back into. Besides,” Ukai said, taking another drag. “He’s only after the family name. And I’m real sorry, but I’m just not my grandfather.”</p><p>You sighed. “So there’s really nothing that I could do to convince you to reconsider?”</p><p>His eyes shone with some mischief as he leveled his gaze at you, flicking the tip of his cigarette, his lips quirking. “I’m afraid that I am a man with far too little time on his hands. It’s not worth me risking anything with the store. It’s just not in the cards.”</p><p>You nodded soberly. That was fair. But you weren’t finished yet; you still had one last card to play. “I can definitely understand and respect that, although I won’t pretend that I’m not disappointed, especially since Takeda was just able to book the practice game with Nekoma… ah, well, no matter now.” You gave a bow. “I won’t bother you any longer, then. It was a pleasure to meet you. Thank you for your time, and have a good evening.”</p><p>You turned, and made as if to leave. <em>5, 4, 3, 2…</em></p><p>“Wait.”</p><p>You smiled. <em>Bingo.</em></p><p>You turned back around, expression innocent. Ukai was looking at you differently now, considering, exhaling another cloud of smoke. He narrowed his eyes. “I close in an hour. Come back then, and I’ll hear you out.”</p><p>You couldn’t fight back the grin that fought its way onto your lips. You mentally high-fived yourself, already picturing Takeda’s excited reaction. “I guess I’ll be seeing you in an hour, then, Ukai Keishin.”</p><p>He barked out a laugh. “I guess so, miss…” he trailed off expectantly, something shining in his eyes.</p><p>But you were already on your way out. “We can exchange formalities once you sign on as Karasuno’s volleyball coach,” you quipped, shooting him a sly smile as you stepped out of the small store, leaving the scent of smoke and the weight of piercing brown eyes behind. He yelled something after you, but by then you had put your helmet on, and you couldn’t make out his words.</p><p>Your heart was pounding as you kicked back the vespa’s stand, and you tried to ignore the way it didn’t slow for the whole drive home.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hey y'all<br/>This is kind of just really self-indulgent and fun hehe, just a fluffy little story (aka literal brain candy no thoughts head empty) to get my mind off of school and in between writing chapters of my actual work :)<br/>I hope you enjoy, and that it helps you escape reality for a little bit too! &lt;3</p><p>Also Ukai just doesn't get enough love.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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